Tag Archive: 3ds


New Pokémon Gameplay Trailer Reveals Several New Species, New Villains

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July 23, 2013

A new trailer for Pokémon X & Y highlights several new species of Pokémon, shows cover Pokémon Xerneas and Yveltal in action, and introduces key characters we’ll meet on our journey through the Kelos region.

Two Pokémon in particular caught my eye: the new Dark- and Fighting-type Pokémon, Pangoro—who looks like an angry panda—and the new Fairy-type Pokémon, Swirlix, which looks like cotton candy. In the trailer (embedded below), Swirlix can be seen using a move called Draining Kiss, a new move that’s basically the Fairy equivalent of Absorb for Grass types.

Meanwhile, Xerneas, officially revealed as a Fairy-type, uses a new move exclusive to its arsenal: Geomancy, which generates rainbow-colored light from the ground to damage enemies.

Not to be outdone, Yveltal uses its own exclusive move, Oblivion Wing, which sees the Dark- and Flying-type Pokémon take to the sky to blast a heat ray at its opponents. Kinda reminds me of Superman.

Some of the key human characters players will meet were also revealed, including Professor Augustine Sycamore—the man who will likely give us our first Pokémon—and Team Flare, the red-obsessed bad guys who surely wish to steal Pokémon for their own nefarious schemes.

Players will have the chance to come face to face with these new characters when Pokémon X & Y becomes available worldwide on October 12, 2013, for the Nintendo 3DS.

Check the full trailer out for yourselves:

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EGM Review: Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D

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June 24, 2013

For the banana horde!

I grew up in the gaming era where, when you mentioned the name “Donkey Kong,” most folks didn’t think of rolling barrels down girders or Mario trying to save a damsel in a cage. No, we thought of Donkey Kong rocking out with his buddy Diddy, lounging around in the jungle, protecting his precious bananas from a bunch of fruit-deprived reptiles. While some around the office still swear by the arcade original, Donkey Kong Country is how many of us more fondly think of the big ape.

After Donkey Kong Country’s initial yearly success on the SNES (yes, the first three games came out in back-to-back-to-back years), the series had difficulty adjusting to the N64. And when DK finally made the jump in 1999, it was a mistake that still haunts many of us—particularly that awful “DK Rap.” (Which is, also, oddly beloved by certain individuals in the EGM offices.) Because of this shame, Nintendo relegated DK to the shadows for over a decade.

Thankfully, Nintendo franchise-saviors Retro stepped in to save the day. After their success with Metroid Prime, they were approached by Shigeru Miyamoto himself and asked to bring back DK. Retro obliged, dropping the hip-hop and returning the super-strong simian back to his platforming roots with Donkey Kong Country Returns, which released in 2010. Even Diddy came back—with a bit of a rocket-pack upgrade—along with the rest of the core gang: Cranky Kong, Rambi the Rhino, and Squawks the Parrot. Retro had done it again.

But now the bad news: Clearly, Nintendo feels that since Donkey Country Returns was such a huge success on the Wii, they can just cash in again by slapping some 3D on Retro’s gorgeous visuals and making the game portable.

It’s at this point of the review where, as EGM’s resident curmudgeon, I’ll try to channel my inner Cranky Kong. Just call me Cranky Carsillo. Sure, the core of the original remains intact, and, yes, this could possibly reach a new audience who didn’t play the original Wii version, but there’s absolutely no need for this game. Their big selling point this go-round? An Easy mode.

Back in my day, gamers didn’t need an Easy mode in our platformers—we simply learned the levels and got better. If you didn’t, you sucked and never got your 15-second ending and credit roll and lived with it, in shame. I’m sick and tired of Nintendo not only porting games over to their portable platform in a desperate attempt to produce titles, but then catering to people because the experiences are “too hard,” coddling a generation of soft gamers.

Sure, Donkey Kong Returns 3D features a handful of new stages, but the game doesn’t offer enough new content for those who played Retro’s offering in 2010 to come back to DK’s isle a second time—especially if you found the plethora of collectibles once already.

Essentially, developer Monster Games just slapped on a coat of 3D paint in order to hide the lack of new features. Donkey Kong Country Returns was a 2.5D platformer; this 3D look does very little for the overall visual experience because of the tricks of the eye Retro already tried the first time around. And don’t forget: We were lucky to get that extra half-dimension when I was a kid, and we were grateful for it! We would’ve walked barefoot in the snow for miles, uphill, for a full 3D experience back then.

OK, time to take off my cranky pants. At the end of the day, I’ll admit the great gameplay that made the first game such a hit returns here. It’s a throwback of a platformer if you play it the way it’s meant to be played—and if, for some reason, you missed Retro’s 2010 offering, this is a nice way to catch up. But if you played the original version a couple of years ago, there’s very little here to make it worth picking up again.

Developer: Monster Games • Publisher: Nintendo • ESRB: E – Everyone • Release Date: 05.24.13
7.0

The meager number of additions here—including the useless 3D gimmick—aren’t enough to make this worth picking up if you played Donkey Kong Country Returns the first time around on the Wii in 2010. If it’s your first time, though, and you’re still curious about checking out Donkey Kong’s latest adventure, this is a solid port.
The Good The platforming excellence from the 2010 release remains intact.
The Bad The 3D does little to enhance the experience.
The Ugly Simpler game modes remind me how easy kids have it these days.
Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D is a Nintendo 3DS exclusive. 
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EGM Review: Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon

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April 7, 2013

Fly Luigi to the Moon

When the GameCube launched in 2001 without an official Mario game, the Nintendo faithful were stunned. Instead, they got a title starring Mario’s brother, Luigi, and immediately many gamers got that sinking feeling that the system was getting off on the wrong foot. But those who actually gave the game a chance found a charming title that reminded us why Luigi deserves the spotlight—maybe not as often as his big bro, but at least once in a while.

The next logical conclusion, then, was that Nintendo wouldn’t launch a system with this game unless they wanted to turn it into a new series. So, we waited. And waited. And waited some more. Several systems, including handhelds, came and went. And after all this waiting, Luigi’s Mansion had been relegated to nothing more than a nice one-hit wonder.

As is often the case with Nintendo, however, just when you think you’ve figured them out, they surprise you. Nearly 12 years post-launch of the original, Nintendo’s decided to give us Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon for the 3DS, a true sequel to that GameCube launch title.

The action unfolds with Professor E. Gadd continuing his paranormal research in a land called Evershade Valley. Here, the ghosts are docile and friendly, like Casper or Slimer. But when the mystical Dark Moon, which hovers over the valley, is shattered into six pieces by Luigi’s old nemesis, King Boo, the ghosts go bonkers. E. Gadd barely escapes to a special safe house he’d constructed in case of such an emergency, and he knows there’s only one call to make.

Being the one man with any sort of ghost-busting expertise in the Mushroom Kingdom, Luigi knows he has to help E. Gadd restore peace to the valley—even if he’s absolutely terrified to do so. Armed with an upgraded Poltergust and flashlight, Luigi must travel to five different locations across the valley in the hopes of collecting the remaining pieces of the Dark Moon (one conveniently fell in E. Gadd’s lap after it broke apart) and helping the ghosts there revert to their more docile state.

The first thing you’ll notice is how pretty Dark Moon looks on the 3DS—and how well it takes advantage of the system’s one-of-a-kind aspects. The gloom and doom of a haunted valley doesn’t usually afford the most vibrant color scheme, but this just makes the bright green of Luigi’s clothes and the rainbow array of colors that represents your ghastly foes pop even more on the tiny screen. Also, the lighting effects are superb; entire rooms flash when lightning strikes, and blowing out candles with the Poltergust can completely change the ambiance of any given area. Dark Moon also takes full advantage of the system’s 3D capabilities by having several puzzles play off the depth perception created by the top screen. As for the bottom screen, a Zelda-like map and list of objectives are displayed to help keep Luigi on point through this 10 to 15-hour adventure.

Dark Moon’s level design is also head and shoulders above its predecessor. With five different haunted houses, each with their own theme, the bevy of different puzzles you’ll face will keep you on your toes and entertained through the two dozen stages. You also get to see the range of this new Poltergust and Luigi’s new flashlight, as some simple techniques learned early on get inventive uses later as the stages become more complex.

The game does supply a few frustrations, however; the most notable of these is the aiming system. Dark Moon is just another entry on the ever-growing list of 3DS titles that could benefit from the use of a second analog stick, as you can’t easily turn Luigi in one direction while moving in another. And it grows more frustrating, as you face tougher and tougher ghosts—and the pull against them is what allows you to suck them into the Poltergust.

In light of the fact that the 3DS only has one analog stick—and that Nintendo decided not to offer support for the Circle Pad Pro—you’re left to make use of the system’s gyroscope, but I don’t imagine anyone playing this will want to spin around wildly with their handheld in an attempt to complete the game. I can just imagine someone sitting on a plane, flailing around and smacking their neighbors in the face. When they ask why you did that, you can just reply that you were desperately trying to catch imaginary ghosts. I’m sure that’ll go over well with the FAA.

The story’s also a bit of a drawback, because just like his brother Mario’s adventures, Luigi’s tale here hits almost all the same beats as the first Luigi’s Mansion. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as the game still has a lot of charm and remains quite humorous as scaredy-cat Luigi progresses further and further. I just expected a little more. Then again, after 12 years, I’m sure not everyone remembers the original Luigi’s Mansion, so this could also serve as an entry point for rookies.

The single-player isn’t the only thing that really caught my eye; one of the more pleasant surprises here is the multiplayer. This option offers four different modes that can feature up to four friends in the ScareScraper, a haunted building where the game’s host can determine where the team of ghost-busting, multicolored Luigis can start at before racing to collect as many pesky poltergeists as possible. I wonder if part of my enjoyment was that it wasn’t just a rip-off of the Luigi’s Mansion minigame from Nintendo Land and instead its own unique feature, though. Nonetheless, if you can’t get enough of the single-player action and want more of a challenge, this is a solid place to look.

Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon’s charm, great looks, and interesting puzzles overshadow its few flaws to provide a quality experience that fans of the original and newcomers to the series alike should enjoy in earnest.

Developer: Next Level Games • Publisher: Nintendo • ESRB: E – Everyone • Release Date: 03.24.13
8.5
Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon maintains much of the charm of the original and benefits from a superior coat of paint and level design. But one limitation the 3DS has—its lack of a second joystick—can prove irksome, especially as you move into the latter stages.
The Good A large variety of levels and puzzles keep the experience fresh.
The Bad The aiming system is in desperate need of a second joystick.
The Ugly Nearly 12 years between titles and virtually the same story.
Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon is a Nintendo 3DS exclusive.
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EGM Review: Fire Emblem: Awakening

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February 2, 2013

Fire in the sky

While the strategy-RPG might be considered mostly niche in terms of audience, a few franchises have permanently ingrained themselves  into the hardcore-gaming community. And fewer still represent this better than Fire Emblem. After its first several chapters were Japan exclusives, Fire Emblem crossed the ocean a decade ago and hasn’t looked back since, as we’ve seen one title in the series on every Nintendo system since the Game Boy Advance/GameCube era. So, if Fire Emblem were to continue this streak, it was only a matter of time before it graced the 3DS’s dual screens. And thus, we have Fire Emblem: Awakening, featuring the same core tactical turn-based strategy gameplay we’ve come to love.

Now, before we even get into the story, we need to talk about something that’s never been seen in a Fire Emblem on this side of the Pacific before: In Awakening, you’re allowed to customize your character. Sure, it’s not as detailed as something you might get in an open-world game, but you still get to name your character, choose their gender, hair, and facial features, and develop an immediate bond with them.

Of course, this also means it’s unlikely that we’ll see much of this particular roster of characters again beyond maybe a Smash Bros. appearance down the line, because your interactions with each and every one of them—especially for your created character—are critical. This leads to another feature never before seen in North America: the marriage/bonding system. By fighting alongside characters in battle, you develop trust; later on, if set to fight side by side again, the characters will get bonuses to certain stats like Critical Hit or Attack Avoidance. And if that trust builds up high enough, and if the characters are of the opposite sex, they can get married and have children—who later can fight for your cause!

A brand-new tactic—never before seen in any other Fire Emblem—can help with this bonding. By sacrificing a turn (strategy fans know how much of a risk this can be), two characters can team up and occupy one square. In the past, certain mounted characters could help move another character; now, though, that second character can also fight should the main character be attacked—and, thus, can also level up. This is a great mechanism to help evenly level up your forces—and advance your battlefield position.

And speaking of leveling up, each character has a new Skills feature that allows them to equip five unique skills—earning a new one every 5 to 10 levels. These skills can help in combat, increase stats, or give a variety of other bonuses depending on the terrain and scenario. Some are simple, like a plus-2 to defense, while others are more elaborate—like giving you a plus-10 to hit if your enemy’s wielding a particular weapon type.

All these combat adjustments and additions are all well and good, but the heart and soul of an RPG is the story. And though Awakening gets off to a slow start, the story’s just as immersive as any previous title —and you’ll soon find yourself as attached to these new characters.

Awakening begins with your character face-down in the mud and unconscious—but soon found by Chrom, Prince of Ylisse (the continent you find yourself on). Immediately, the cheesy RPG stereotypes start flying; not only does your character have amnesia, but you’re also immediately welcomed with open arms into Chrom’s band of merry men (and women) who fight to keep Ylisse safe from outside forces. And not only that, but you’re immediately made chief tactician, too! How convenient. And so begins the heroic, swashbuckling adventures of Ray the Tactician! Er, or…whoever you should actually choose to be. Like I said, it’s a slow start to the story, but you’re soon caught up in a conflict that’ll span two continents as you try to quell a threat millennia in the making.

A slow start to an RPG story is a more than forgivable offense, as it’s rare that they start off with a bang. That’s not to say there are no unforgivable flaws, though, with Fire Emblem: Awakening. If you choose to play the game with the traditional “permadeath” feature on, you may find your forces dwindling faster than you’d like. This isn’t uncommon in a Fire Emblem game, and there is an option to turn off permadeath via Casual mode. Still, I would’ve loved an easier way to restart battles where I lost characters, instead of having to restart the game over and over. I suppose you could say I should’ve just turned permadeath off, but that wouldn’t be getting the full Fire Emblem experience—and I still like the idea of being punished for letting one of my characters die. But restarting the whole game repeatedly became a chore, and I stopped caring about certain characters (I’m looking at you, Frederick!) after a while.

The biggest letdown, however, is easily the graphics. The animation style for the story cutscenes is fantastic; it exudes a level of detail rarely seen on any console, never mind a handheld. The problem comes from the sprites used on the battle grid that fail to take advantage of the system’s 3D. In fact, much of the game avoids using the 3D feature, which makes me wonder why they even bothered with it. And the few times 3D models are used—mostly during battle sequences—they look blocky and appear to have no feet. I questioned Eric L. Patterson, our news editor, to see if he wasn’t seeing what I wasn’t seeing; he agreed that all the models looked like Rob Liefeld designed them as they pranced around the battlefield on their tiptoes.

At the end of the day, though, these are minor complaints. Fire Emblem: Awakening stands near the pinnacle of the series, as it blends rarely seen elements and a few new twists of its own into the tried-and-true combat and storytelling. Awakening is one of the few must-have’ 3DS titles.  

SUMMARY: Aside for some minor annoyances, this is probably the best Fire Emblem to come to the States yet. Strategy fans everywhere should rejoice.

  • THE GOOD: As pure a strategy experience as you’ll get anywhere.
  • THE BAD: No simple way to restart battles.
  • THE UGLY: The 3D character models look like they were designed by Rob Liefeld.

SCORE: 9.0

Fire Emblem: Awakening is a Nintendo 3DS exclusive.

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EGM Review: Pokémon Black/White 2

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October 20, 2012

We won’t get caught again

When Pokémon Red/Blue hit North American shores 14 years ago, I don’t think anyone could’ve imagined the phenomenon it would become and continues to be to this day, as the franchise keeps churning out hit games (that, in turn, also lead to truckloads of other merchandise and media). In all that time, though, Pokémon‘s never seen a true sequel. Most of the time, we simply see the same game rehashed over and over again but with new opponents, new areas, or the most popular choice of new Pokémon, which has bloated the Pokédex to more than four times the size of that seen in Red/Blue. Finally, though, we get a direct sequel, and it’s a follow-up to one of the more beloved Pokémon games in recent history in Pokémon Black/White 2.

The game starts like every other Pokémon outing: You choose between a male or female trainer and then set off into the world to become the greatest trainer ever by collecting eight gym badges—and hopefully conclude your adventure by challenging the Elite Four and the Champion to become Champion yourself. Along the way, you’ll also try to bring justice to Pokémon and people in need and promote positive relations between Pokémon and humans by completing sidequests. Much of this revolves around crushing the resurgent Team Plasma, who wish to steal all the Pokémon for their own nefarious purposes.

But as you start to get deeper and deeper into the game, you’ll get a feeling of déjà vu; many of the areas and trainers you’ll meet are exactly the same from the first game—and this is Pokémon Black/White 2’s major flaw. Minor aesthetic changes can’t hide the fact that this game is a soulless carbon copy of its predecessor unlike any other Pokémon release before it.

Now, I understand that Pokémon has used this formula for years, but when you make a sequel and set a game in the exact same universe as the previous title, the story needs a little extra “oomph,” and players need to see more differences from the original game. The first Pokémon Black/White was so adored because it mixed things up for the first time in a long time while still sticking to the core gameplay values. These same values remain in Pokémon Black/White 2, but the story here makes it feel like you’re playing the exact same game most of the time but with a couple of meaningless new side areas like Pokéstar Studios.

The gameplay does at least shine through here, though—it’s still as tight as ever, and there are still few greater feelings in RPGs than capturing a wild Pokémon (especially a legendary one) or overcoming a difficult foe by knowing what types work well against your opponent and actually outplaying them. And some minor gameplay additions do augment the action in positive ways—like the new Challenge and Assist modes that allow you to raise or lower the level of your foes on a second playthrough. Still, all this doesn’t hide the fact that the game just feels like a sad attempt to doll up an experience that seems more like Pokémon Black/White 1.5 instead of Pokémon Black/White 2.

In the end, Pokemon Black/White 2 handles just as tightly as any other game in the franchise’s history, and it’s still fun to play; it would also serve as a great jumping-on point for any newcomers. But for veteran Pokémon players—or even fans of the first Pokémon Black/White—you’ll most likely end up disappointed.

SUMMARY: The story takes a step backward, and the new game modes aren’t that impressive. Mostly, it’s just the same ol’ Jigglypuff song and dance from Pokemon Black/White 2.

  • THE GOOD: A few interesting new locations and game modes.
  • THE BAD: The story takes a step backward and does little to differentiate itself from the previous game.
  • THE UGLY: The fact that the Pokédex is at almost 650 Pokemon now…

SCORE 6.5

Pokemon Black/White 2 are Nintendo DS exclusives. Primary version played for review was Pokemon White 2.

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EGM Review: New Super Mario Bros. 2

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August 13, 2012

Mario loves da gold! Wa-hoooo!

Ever since Mario had to traverse eight definitely different worlds, donned his first set of raccoon ears to fly, and bashed Bowser’s seven nasty Koopalings, the formula to making a great side-scrolling Mario game hasn’t changed much over the years. New items have been introduced, and Bowser Jr. sometimes takes the place of Larry, Morton Jr., Wendy O., Iggy, Lemmy, Roy, and Ludwig, but for the most part, things have stayed relatively the same.

And this formula’s maintained once again with New Super Mario Bros. 2 for the 3DS. The Koopalings, who have a bit more of a grown-up design—they’re technically of legal drinking age now, after all—and their dad, Bowser, have kidnapped Princess Peach for the billionth time. So, it’s once again up to Mario and Luigi to storm through the Mushroom Kingdom and leave kicked turtles shells and flattened Goombas in their wake, whether alone, or by linking up for some brotherly co-op action.

The twist this time is that the Mushroom Kingdom has apparently gone through some sort of economic boom, because coins are everywhere. New Golden Fire Flowers turn blocks into coins or cause enemies to yield coins when defeated. Golden turtle shells leave a path of coins in their wake for Mario and Luigi to collect. The brothers can even carry around golden blocks that drop more coins as they jump, run, and fly through eight more worlds based in familiar Mushroom Kingdom locales. Along with these new items are the returning regular Fire Flower, Super Mushroom, Invincibility Star, and Raccoon Leaf. With the Raccoon Leaf, we also see the P-Meter return—which, when full, allows Mario and Luigi to temporarily fly through the skies of a given stage.

Aside from the new items, New Super Mario Bros. 2 does offer something that’s been critical to all Mario games, side-scrolling or 3D: tight controls and intricate puzzles that can be solved using Mario’s bevy of jumps and other abilities like the butt-stomp. This platforming perfection is what makes Mario games so fun, and in that regard, New Super Mario Bros. 2 definitely succeeds with its own share of secrets, collectibles, and branching pathways that can be unlocked depending on how you should advance through the game. The more time you put into practicing your jumps, the more you should get out of this Mario adventure.

It’s also nice to see the Koopalings gimmick taking a necessary step forward to provide us wily old Mario veterans a little bit of a challenge this time around. Not only do the Koopalings have their trademark magic wands that allow them to blast fireballs at Mario, but each one also has a lair uniquely designed to their strengths, requiring Mario to overcome extra obstacles he’s never seen before from Bowser’s seven brats. This adds a tinge of excitement to reaching the end of each level; you never knew what to expect next, as the lairs are definitely brand-new experiences.

And speaking of new, the newest game mode, Coin Rush, is probably what will help keep New Super Mario Bros. 2 fresh in people’s minds more than anything, as it provides an arcade-like replayability we haven’t seen in a Mario game in decades. Traversing through three random stages with one life and trying to set a coin high score to share with your friends via StreetPass not only keeps in line with the theme of the game—which promotes you to try to collect 1 million lifetime coins—but also gives you a chance to readily compare scores with your friends like you’d see with online leaderboards.

All in all, not much has changed since the last New Super Mario Bros., but not much really needed to change in the first place. The controls are still as tight as ever, the look and sound drips classic Mario, the platforming puzzles are expertly designed, and even the Koopalings have seen a bit of a facelift. The new Coin Rush mode adds some needed replayability, and the StreetPass leaderboards can become addictive if you’re into that arcade style of play.

The only thing you might not enjoy is the fact that the Princess still hasn’t figured out how to keep out of Bowser’s clutches, but then again, it wouldn’t quite be a Mario game if she did. New Super Mario Bros. 2 succeeds in finding a way to stay entertaining using a formula first used 25-plus years ago, and fans old and new shouldn’t wait to jump into the world’s most famous plumber’s latest adventure.

SUMMARY: Though we’ve seen this formula before, New Super Mario Bros. 2 finds a way to keep itself just fresh enough while still hitting platfroming perfection.

  • THE GOOD: Still the tightest platforming out there.
  • THE BAD: We’ve seen this formula before.
  • THE UGLY: The Mushroom Kingdom’s imminent economic collapse.

SCORE: 9.0

New Super Mario Bros. 2 is a 3DS exclusive.

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EGM Review: Heroes of Ruin

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July 20, 2012

Need a dungeon-crawling hero on your 3DS?

When gamers think of expansive dungeon-crawling action-RPGs, they tend to think of games primarily on the PC. And with the popularity of these titles as of late, it’s no surprise to see Square Enix throwing their hat into the ring, too. With the help of developer n-Space, they’ve given us a hack-n-slasher that still provides that sense of collecting loot, leveling up, fighting off swarms of bad guys, and teaming up with friends—but, in this case, it’s on the 3DS.

Heroes of Ruin tells the tale of a world ravaged by war until nearly all-powerful Lords rise up and broker a temporary peace. When Ataraxis—who happens to be a Sphinx and one of the fabled Lords who rules the city of Nexus, which also serves conveniently as a hub world—falls ill, heroes far and wide are called upon to find a cure. And, of course, in the process, they’ll also uncover a sinister plot.

From the start, you can choose from four classes. The Gunslinger is your standard ranged badass type; the Vindicator looks like Lion-O from ThunderCats and swings a massive sword like him, too; the Alchitect is your typical mage character; and the Savage is your brutish tank that likes to get his hands dirty. Once you choose your character, you can do some minor customizing before your adventure starts, but as you start to collect bushels of loot, your character’s look will definitely change further as your progress.

Once you actually begin your quest to save Ataraxis, you’ll quickly recognize that each character has stat sheets that basically translate to “attack,” “defense,” “magic,” and so on. You’ve also got several slots in which you can equip items to bolster these stats, ranging from torso and leg armor to belts, rings, and shoulder pads. You also have three different ability trees, and you can assign one from each to the three corresponding face buttons. If you’re like me and play as the Gunslinger, you’ll find you can throw flasks that act like flashbangs and stun enemies from one button, while you can perform a sweeping arc of fire from your guns to perform a large area-of-effect attack with another.

In terms of gameplay, this is indeed your basic dungeon-crawling RPG, and it does little to differentiate itself from the crowd. If you’re expecting something on the level of Diablo out of this top-down action-RPG, you’ll certainly be disappointed—but, of course, if you were actually expecting Diablo, you might also be certifiably insane. Heroes of Ruin looks nice for a 3DS game, but compared to what you can get on your PC, it obviously pales in comparison. The same goes for the audio, as the voice acting and music push the 3DS’ tiny speakers as far as they can go. I probably could’ve done without the enemies respawning every 30 seconds as well, considering the backtracking required to complete a lot of quests. At least this leads to quick leveling and more new powers, though. So, on the surface, little stands out in a positive way about Heroes of Ruin—though there are also very few outright negatives, either.

But there’s one aspect where the game really shines, and that’s in the social and multiplayer aspects. The game features seamless 4-player drop-in, drop-out co-op and the ability to perform daily challenges via SpotPass, which helps with leveling as well. The most impressive feature, though, is the use of StreetPass to access Traders Network, where you can swap items you pick up as you play. If you’re playing by yourself, this encourages you to be a little social, as you’ll accrue a lot of loot for classes you aren’t using. Instead of just quickly cashing that loot in for a few gold coins, you can get its full value or an item of equal or greater use if you put it on Traders Network.

Overall, Heroes of Ruin won’t disappoint fans of dungeon-crawling RPGs. In fact, it’s a solid effort for a 3DS entry considering the scale and scope of the adventure; the game really only falters from its lack of originality and the fact that anyone expecting more from the hardware will likely end up migrating back to their PC sooner rather than later. If you’re looking to kill a few hours with a hack-n-slash dungeon-crawler that shines brightest when it links up with three other 3DSes for 4-player co-op, though, this might be a good way to get your fix on the go.

SUMMARY: Heroes of Ruin is a pretty game by 3DS standards, with a compelling story wrapped around unoriginal combat, quests, and leveling. 

  • THE GOOD: Seamless 4-player drop-in, drop-out co-op
  • THE BAD: Unoriginal story and gameplay
  • THE UGLY: Never-ending streams of respawning baddies

SCORE: 7.0

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EGM Review: Pokémon Conquest

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July 8, 2012

Gotta conquer it all

Since the “Gotta Catch ‘em All” superfad days of the late ’90s, Pokemon’s been a gaming staple that’s transcended audiences due to its addictive, turn-based RPG base and its cute, family-friendly humor and themes. But like all great Nintendo cash cows, it also needs to break away from the formula every once in a while in order to possibly reach new audiences (and wallets). That’s what led to the creation of the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon spin-off, after all—and to the game we’re looking at today.

Pokémon Conquest is a cross between the pocket monsters we know and love and the classic Tecmo Koei strategy series Nobunaga’s Ambition, which tasks players with uniting feudal Japan under one banner. In this game, you’re the newest daimyo in the land of Ransei, a Japanese-inspired realm. Along with your loyal pet Eevee, you’ll build an army comprised of the best Pokémon trainers in the land in order to conquer the 17 other daimyos and rule Ransei. Each daimyo, just like in all the other Pokémon games, battles using themes based around specific types of Pokémon—and, with 17 daimyos to conquer, you’re sure to see each type represented once.

But if you’re expecting a traditional Pokémon game beyond those aspects, you’ll be sorely disappointed. The Pokémon you wield are simply tools to carry out macro and micro strategies on a gridlike battlefield. In fact, Pokémon traditionalists may well be irked by the gameplay. But if you can look past what this game isn’t and focus more on what it is, you’ll find a deep, well-polished, engrossing strategy offering.

The bulk of the actual gameplay sees you positioning your Pokémon around a field, moving them square by square in standard strategy-game fashion and then either choosing to attack, hold your position, or use an item, which reminded me of a poor man’s Fire Emblem. One downside to this, though, is that each Pokémon only has one attack move instead of the traditional four. That means that once you choose to attack, your turn with that Pokémon is all but over. For a game revolving around strategy, removing that classic Pokémon element is somewhat puzzling. That, and when—or if—a Pokémon evolves almost seems to come at random, as the leveling-up system we know and love has also been replaced by a Pokémon’s “strength rating” and a meter measuring the relationship with their respective trainer.

The biggest key to success in Pokémon Conquest, though, is that instead of capturing new Pokémon, you recruit new trainers and their specific Pokémon to your cause and build your army up. This is an interesting dynamic, as you can fight with up to six Pokemon per turn; once you reach the limit of six trainers in your party, though, you’ll need to start distributing other trainers to previously conquered lands. But since each land can also only hold six trainers at a time, you’re very limited in who you can or can’t recruit—and this will surely frustrate players used to trying to complete their Pokédex (now replaced by a common gallery) and having as many Pokéballs they could buy and then just storing them in a massive PC.

Though the Pokémon label might be slightly disingenuous, Conquest does offer a novel, enjoyable take on the strategy genre—and the Pokémon brand also gives the traditionally hardcore strategy genre a modicum of accessibility to a wider audience. If the wider Pokémon fanbase can look past a few curious decisions in regards to this odd franchise marriage, they’ll find a strong strategy title that should provide some severe addiction in its own right.

SUMMARY: Another solid Pokémon spin-off, but die-hard fans will quickly miss much of the gameplay from the main series.

  • THE GOOD: Interesting blend of turn-based strategy elements with Pokémon.
  • THE BAD: Hardcore Pokémon fans will miss the traditional catching and leveling aspects of the main series.
  • THE UGLY: Some of the simplest level design you’ll ever see.

SCORE: 8.0

Pokémon Conquest is a Nintendo DS exclusive.     

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EGM Review: Kid Icarus: Uprising

Filed under: EGM (Electronic Gaming Monthly), Written — Leave a comment
April 16, 2012

Get ready to hate eggplant again

Many of us who grew up with the NES fell in love with the idea of a little angel who was trying to save the heavens from a nasty demon with snakes for hair. Then we played this game and proceeded to throw and smash many a controller due to what would become its legendary difficulty and would need to go to anger therapy for being turned into an eggplant over and over again.

But still, all this was part of the charm of the original Kid Icarus, and many of us wondered why we never received a true console sequel. Sure there was a Game Boy version in 1991 that was really just a dumbed down version of the original and we’d later be teased and taunted by Pit being a fighter in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. But now, finally, after so long, Pit is back to serve the goddess of light, Palutena, and save the world once again from Medusa. And Medusa has a few surprises in store for our dear Pit, including a dark doppelganger of our hero, the return of her lieutenants like Pandora, and yes, that damned Eggplant Wizard as well. At least now the eggplant thing is only temporary though (although I would’ve loved to have seen some 3D nurses).

But, although Eggplant Wizard may no longer be as infuriating as he once was (or his new cousin Tempura Wizard that can turn Pit into a shrimp), there is still some great difficulty to be had with the new Kid Icarus: Uprising. But if the normal experience should prove simple for some of you out there, you can make the game more difficult before hand by sacrificing found hearts to the “Fiend’s Cauldron” before each chapter and amp up the Intensity to a level 10 (the game starts at an Intensity level of 2). This can lead to finding bigger and better treasure in a level, but will also throw a lot more and stronger enemies at you and if you should die, you lose all the hearts you used to increase the difficulty in the first place.

Unfortunately, the “Fiend’s Cauldron” isn’t the only thing that makes the game difficult. Some of the game’s inherent difficulty also stems from the unusual control scheme. All of the action from the game stems from shooting with the L Button, moving with the circle pad, and using the stylus to aim and look. Each level is broken into two parts. The first is always an on-rails in the air style shooter where Palutena is guiding Pit’s wings and all you have to do is shoot enemies as they come on screen. This works fine with the odd controls.

The problems always arose during the second part of each level when Pit was on the ground and the game became more of a traditional third-person shooter. It was difficult to target enemies, move the camera around with the stylus, and really just figure out where you were going at any time or where you should be looking. I would have killed for some sort of Z-Targeting system like in The Legend of Zelda games (or a second joystick like every other shooter made in the past decade) just to help me keep my bearings with a lot of the foes, especially during the epic boss battles. And although the included stand does help alleviate some of the strain that comes from having to hold the 3DS so awkwardly whenever you play, it also limits you to where you can play as it only works best on a table or flat surface of some kind. Trust me, I tried it in my lap and a few other places, and tables are your best bet.

Despite this, you’ll probably be able to force your way through most of the game as long as you take it in short spurts of only a couple of chapters at a time. And because of the humorous writing and great story, you’ll definitely be compelled to finish the story mode. Not to mention, the ability to use nine different types of weapons with a bevy of options in each category really helps keep the game play from getting too boring as you get new weapons through a variety of different means.

But, here I am getting carried away with how awesome the story mode is, and I almost forgot that there is also a huge new multiplayer component to the game as well. First, you can use AR cards included with the game or Idols collected in game to duel various creatures from the game’s universe against each other with the 3DS cameras. There are also “Light vs. Dark” team-style and “Free-For-All” versus arena modes where you can battle up to six players with your own customized Pit depending on what weapons you find and use in the game.

The game is also pleasing to the eyes and ears as no two levels, in story mode or versus, look alike and take advantage of a bright and colorful design palette, and the voice acting, especially for Pit and Palutena in story mode, who fill in most of the gaps of the story with some witty mid-level banter, is simply top of the line. Add in some remixes of classic NES themes and a few new tunes as well and the audio/visual component of the game is superb all around.

When all is said and done, although the controls may be frustrating at times and take some getting used to, this is a very solid game. Great visuals, tremendous depth of game play modes, and a fully realized plot that is brilliantly executed on every level makes this probably a must have for every 3DS owner out there.

SUMMARY: A brilliantly written and executed new chapter in the long-abandoned, but never forgotten, Kid Icarus franchise that will appeal to new and old fans alike with its amazing depth and stunning visuals.

  • THE GOOD: Great action and writing throughout
  • THE BAD: Unusual control system can get uncomfortable after long periods of time
  • THE UGLY: How about a two-decade long wait for a true sequel

SCORE: 8.5

Kid Icarus: Uprising is a Nintendo 3DS exclusive.

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Transformers: Prime Announced by Activision

Filed under: EGM (Electronic Gaming Monthly), Written — Leave a comment
March 16, 2012

THE BUZZ: Activision and Hasbro have announced Transformers: Prime, a video game based off The Hub TV show and that will be available exclusively on Nintendo’s Wii, 3DS, and DS platforms this fall.

EGM’S TAKE: “Transformers: Prime” is a hugely popular show on The Hub and so it is no surprise that a digital extension of that brand would be made at some point. The timing for the release of the game is also ideal as it will go hand in hand with the release of Fall of Cybertron, offering Transformers fans on all systems an option of some sort when looking to get their Robots in Disguise fix.

With Arcee, Bumblebee, Optimus Prime, Ratchet, and Bulkhead all confirmed to be playable in the game, fans should get a good amount of variety in terms of action set in the Prime universe. Also, it has been said that you will have to cultivate the relationships between the Autobots and their three human friends from the show as Team Prime looks to take down Megatron once and for all.

The game is being developed by Now Production for the Wii and 3DS and Altron Corporation for the DS version. If you would like to see the reveal trailer, feel free to check it out below!

What do you folks think? Does it make sense for Nintendo to take the cartoon oriented Transformers game? Would you rather play this game or Fall of Cybertron if you could only have one? Let us know what you think with comments below!

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